somesurprises is the Seattle based band led by songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Natasha El-Sergany. Born in Letterkenny, Ireland, and raised in the north of England before moving to Florida at age ten, El-Sergany eventually found home in the evergreen mist of the Pacific Northwest. What began as a bedroom project focused on spectral balladry and late-night exploration, somesurprises has since evolved into an enigmatic collaboration with synthesist and guitarist Josh Medina. Since 2017, the duo has created a unique blend of reverb drenched folk, motorik dream pop and drone rock.
Their most recent full length, Perseids, is the band’s most expansive sound yet. Building from the initial intimacy of El-Sergany’s delicate guitar playing and lilting voice, the group find themselves enveloped in a celestial framework. Creative guidance from bassist Laura Seniow, drummer Nico Sophiea, and cellist Lori Goldston, help forge the band into uncharted territory, where layers of electronics, strings and effects set the stage for somesurprises’ sonic meditations. The album was released by Doom Trip Records in 2024 and has since received glowing praise from NPR, The Quietus, Aquarium Drunkard, The Fader and Bandcamp, the latter stating “(that) by patiently working around the fringes of shoegaze and dream pop, somesurprises finds itself a form that’s unbeholden to the times or trends.”
Year Without Spring (05/02/25) takes the group in a different direction. After finishing Perseids, El-Sergany took residence at Laminal Audio in Bremerton, Washington and spent days layering together mellotron, guitar and vocals. Back in Seattle, Evan Hashi helped record and produce the EP, adding synthesizer and bass. Medina returns on the three tracks with heavily effected guitar meanderings. Inspired by a wide range of artists from Fairuz and Peggy Lee to Nick Drake and William Wordsworth, Year Without Spring is an ode to our ever-changing natural world, and the value of reflecting on our personal and collective relationship to the land.